12 Steps to Climate Sobriety

The political analysis organization The Hill has developed a creative way to try and break our fossil fuel dependency. They took their cue from the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) "12 Step Program" to restore sobriety.

Their approach to "tough love" will be a long slog and is summarized here:

1. Recognize that burning fossil fuels and deforestation has altered the global climate and is crippling the planet's natural ability to absorb this extra carbon;

2. Recognize that there is a higher authority that can help solve these problems ie, Science;

3. Make a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of the planet;

4. Make an inventory of our own energy uses to increase efficiency in our energy footprints as individuals, corporations, governments and nations.

5. Admit that during our nation's development we have been a major contributor to the changing global climate through conspicuous consumption of fossil fuels;

6. Make it a priority to remove our own defects of energy use through ending government fossil fuel subsidies;

8. Make lists of communities and ecosystems harmed by fossil fuel use to understand what we have done;

9. Make amends to such communities and ecosystems through restoration of damaged ecosystems, building resilience into communities, and support developing nation's in renewable energy development;

10. Maintain an inventory of US energy consumption and production in an energy audit every 5 years and take corrective actions as needed;

11. Seek through scientific research to improve our decisions for the planet that supports us by developing methods to move from a culture of exploitation to a culture of stewardship;

12. Having achieved our climate awakening by implementing sustainable and renewable ways to power our society, while protecting our environment, thru these steps, carry this message, technologies, and innovations to other nations so that they might also thrive.

It remains a question if climate "denial" by some political leaders will continue to cloud their own sobriety.